sp. nov., an actinobacterium isolated from clinical specimens in Japan.

Two novel actinobacteria, designated IFM 12276 and IFM 12275, were isolated from clinical specimens in Japan, and their taxonomic positions were investigated using a polyphasic approach. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons revealed that strains IFM 12276 and IFM 12275 have completely identical 16S rRNA gene sequences and were closely related to members of the genus . The highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity was observed to (99.6 %) and (99.6 %), followed by (99.3 %) and (99.3 %). The whole-cell hydrolysates of strains IFM 12276 and IFM 12275 contained -diaminopimelic acid, arabinose and galactose. The acyl type of muramic acid was -glycolyl. The predominant isoprenoid quinone was MK-8(H, -cycl.) and the principal polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylinositol mannosides. Strains IFM 12276 and IFM 12275 contained mycolic acids that co-migrated with those from the type strain of . These chemotaxonomic features corresponded to those of the genus . Meanwhile, the differences in some phenotypic characteristics, along with the results of average nucleotide identity and digital DNA-DNA hybridization analyses, indicated that strains IFM 12276 and IFM 12275 should be distinguished from the recognized species of the genus . Therefore, these strains represent a novel species of the genus , for which the name sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is IFM 12276 (=NBRC 115477=TBRC 17096).